Hasty Nature: A SoulSilver Nuzlocke
by Simplistic Magpie
Summary: Impulsively volunteering to be one of Professor Elm's starters, Sally the chikorita thought little of the consequences. Now she is forced to learn the unpleasant realities, along with immense joys, of being at a trainer's side. [Story version of my Nuzlocke challenge]
1. Volunteer

Hasty Nature: A SoulSilver Nuzlocke

**Prologue **

Volunteer

Going up to the fence had always been strictly prohibited. Slipping in-between the aging posts would have caused any of the meganium in the meadow to faint. I couldn't help myself though; that wooden square covered in black designs intrigued me past the point of reason. I shook paint chippings from my coat while backing up to get a better view. If only someone could have taught me to understand the silent human language, then I would have finally been able to stop staring at the sign.

Of course, I knew very well the overall message of it. We all did. Mothers passed it down with the stories of our colony history. We're protected. Humans have to leave us alone as long as we are inside the meadow.

Some mothers left it at that, but mine made certain that we knew of the sacrifice. "Not reciting the pact creates a complacent colony and does nothing to honor those who left." Once every litter cycle, when the previous year's chikoritas were near the edge of evolution, a human would come for one of us. Always a chikorita. "We needn't fear him. He is a well-respected human, one that is titled professor. He is not a novice trainer who will lead us into foolhardy battle to result in death." The man had not visited our home in many cycles though. Bayleef grew who had never set eyes upon him. Mother worried that our colony would become thankless towards the professor. She was right.

It was because I was outside the fence, fixating on the unknown scribbles, that I was the first to see him. He was just as mother described, tall with a soft middle, trailing behind one of those strange unattached skins that humans had. A long white one. I watched it catch the air with every sure step he took in my direction. He saw me before he reached the fence. Afraid I would anger him and revoke our protection, I fled.

All gathered around the glittering pond when the human called Elm knelt beside it. By the time he reached the center of our home, the entire colony had heard my spouting about the human coming at last. Everything became very busied, meganium and bayleef gathering those who had not yet listened to my news. Mother never even asked how I saw him first.

The human cupped water between his front paws and splashed it up to his face several times. If the dozens of pokémon surrounding him made him nervous, he did not show it. Many meganium kept their chikoritas between their strong legs, fenced within a fence. Elm gingerly rotated to face us and lowered his body into a fully seated position. The posts protecting children tightened as he moved. "So many of you have evolved; I'm impressed! Although, I suppose I haven't visited in a while." Despite his easy beam and gentle voice, the colony in general tensed further. Even mother allowed her breathing to hitch.

The human spoke for a long time, often in confusing rambles. He sounded like I did when I would think out loud to the sign. Mostly he talked about his children, particularly focusing on the youngest. I could understand his words. I just could not find much interest in them. In my daydreams, I pictured humans to be fascinating creatures with magic at their disposal. Instead, he was as dull as the elders. I wanted to go play with the chikoritas that had been freed into the wild grass. Mother made me be respectful though and pretend to listen.

"So, as it be, I am in need of three starter pokémon this year. The kids are really great, all older, so I'm sure you'll get to go out adventuring quite soon. I've got a great feeling about it." An edged silence sliced through the already quiet meadow. "Would any of the chikoritas wish to be my grass type?" He stared expectantly, still wearing a grin. "I know I haven't been by recently, but surely you haven't forgotten me! I'm Elm. My lab maintains this land's non-catch zone rights. I can take one of you to be paired up with a studious trainer. You'll have a grand journey with rewarding friendships!" Not one of us moved. Even my friends running about in the grass stilled their pouncing. "No volunteers? Hmm, I suppose I can always just have two cyndaquils." He slowly moved to his feet, allowing his voice to become a contemplative murmur.

He did not sound upset, yet my mother's eyes widened and her jaw grew taut as if he'd snarled threats. Her head snapped back and forth, connecting eyes with the other meganium who did the same. Each parent and elder fought with panic, and still, no one acted.

Everything in my vision slowed as the human began to walk the beaten grass down to the fence. My stomach felt like a rock.

Elm got further.

Mother silently pleaded to another parent who begged yet another.

I told my legs to run. I lurched forward an inch before my paws became roots.

The man grew small among tall flowers and sparse trees.

Arguments rumbled low.

"Just come on!" I inwardly yelled at myself.

No more double skinned human.

Harsh words.

I pried a paw free.

Mother shouted for calm.

I urged my unstuck leg forward and it uprooted the rest. Before I could realize I was running, I was already too far away to look back and see Mother clearly.

"I will earn our safety," I pledged between gulps of air. Chest on fire, I repeated my words again. And then again. Until they had no interruptions of harsh gasps. Until they had strength. Until they reached the ears of the human climbing over the fence.

Surprised by my squeaky voice playing tough, he looked down and cheerfully greeted, "Hello there little one! Seeing me off?" I waited until both of his legs were planted on the opposite side before slipping through after him. "What you want to come with me?" The corners of his mouth flicked down for a moment. "You look awfully young. I think you should go back home to your family." I jumped backwards when he started to reach for me, but not nearly far enough. With ease, he was able to grab underneath my body with his strange paws. The feeling of being pulled from the ground nearly made me vomit. The large distance of a fall that could come stared at me. Instead of being smart and staying still, I squirmed every which way I could. "Hold on there, I'm just putting you back."

Once again, I watched the human walk away for a while. This time, though, I sat with choice. Being plucked up was not something I wished to rush into again. With persistence, he might find me old enough to be chosen. Did I really want to leave my home and family? Sitting and thinking over options was not one of my strong suits.

I looked back at the meadow. Sunlight gilded the grassy expanses. If not for the bushy flowers and dry weeds that towered over my head, I probably would have been able to see the moving small dots that were my colony. The land was flat enough. Mother might not have been with the group anymore, most likely already searching for me. I didn't want to worry her.

My family needed the meadow though. Eggs holding the new generation were already piled. One was my mother's. The best thing I could do for her would be to save our land. With that thought rooted in my mind, I once again crossed past the fence, determined to follow the human until he accepted me.

* * *

**Author's Note:** I know most people put these at the beginning of their story, but I think that is a little distracting. If I ever need to include a note, it'll be down here at the bottom. Anyways, I started to play a nuzlocke after reading so many cute comics. I can't draw, but I do enjoy writing. This is the story I'm coming up with so that it is not just a retelling of the game. It takes place twenty years after the events of the actual game. I may change the trainers for the battles, but I'll keep the pokémon the same. If you'd like for me to include my party and their levels at the end of the coming chapters, let me know and I will.

Also, I stopped watching the show after they changed out Misty or Brock (whichever they did first). So any of the human characters I use will be what I know of them from the game. If they are completely different from the television show, I apologize.


	2. Introduction

**Chapter One**

Introduction

Life inside a pokéball turned out to be nothing like how the humans described it. I'd listened in to the musings of the assistants flocking around Elm. Some thought it was like being snuggled in a bed or nest, while another thought it to be more like a miniature world. Really, it's just dark. You're there with only your thoughts, feeling disconnected from your body, lost. The first few moments passed and I thought that it wasn't so bad. As my existence dragged on, I lost track of time. The professor promised I would only be in there a few hours, but months, maybe even years, visited. All I had were memories, thoughts, questions, and fears. And, after a while, I ran out of all those things too. If I'd known about the stagnant hole called a pokéball, I may not have run after the human. I could do nothing but hope for a quick release.

Up until being zapped inside the ball, living in the lab was not completely horrible. The professor allowed me to follow him to the edge of the woods before stating again that I should return to my home. I had already bitten into my decision, and so I defiantly sat at his heels. He debated for a long time, finally coming to the conclusion that I was not leaving. "You're the little one that was outside the fence, weren't you? Maybe you're just small for your age."

Nearly every experience from then on was new to me. I lived each moment with an anxious exhilaration. Elm introduced me to the shelters humans stayed in, the prepared food they ate, and many of the bizarre technologies they wielded. He did not prepare me for my new life as thoroughly as the cyndaquil did though.

Two other pokémon lived inside of the blindingly white lab with me. There was a totodile who made me look like a giant. With as much concern Elm held for me, I'm still surprised he allowed that runt to be chosen. My second living mate was a magnificent cyndaquil. The flames on his back were so consistently full and luscious that I fully believed his story of being from the alpha line of his pack.

While the totodile did not speak much, or really at all, the fire pokémon's mouth hardly stayed shut. He schooled me in everything basic to humans. Coming from a nesting grounds close to a city, his pack's ways of life were closely tied into human society. They even told the young ones stories of great trainers. His knowledge came of great use to me. I was eager to learn about the telling of time and of toilet customs, even if his tone was a bit condescending. After two of the so-called months, the cyndaquil became convinced that I knew enough to get by.

The ending of my lessons aligned almost perfectly with the beginning of the three new trainers.

Waiting still to be freed from the mentally suffocating nothing, I tried to focus on my hopes of seeing a certain human's face. Only one of the possible candidates for my trainer visited the lab in my time there. Ivy seemed like the kind of human I needed. Being the daughter of Elm, her entire life had been filled with knowledge about pokémon and how to keep us safe. All of her movements were well coordinated and determination read across her painted face.

Ivy seemed to like me well enough. She would usually spare me a few strokes on the back whenever I would playfully tug her skirt or rub my face against her smooth legs. Her eyes fascinated me. They were always painted with deep hues of red, matching the determined glimmer they held. Going by her name, I was the obvious choice, but the pompous cyndaquil told me otherwise. "Ivy is obsessed with Lyra; she's not going to want you."

"Who is Lyra?"

The fire type scoffed. "She's only the longest running champion of Johto. About twenty years ago, she got her start in this lab, having chosen my great-uncle as her starter. Ivy knows of my superior bloodline. Plus, she dyes her hair red. Like fire."

I thought the hair argument was a bit silly, but the first part had me worried.

A light began to eat through the black engulfing me and I knew time had finally come. I let myself be bathed in it. Feeling began to trickle down into my body. In a few moments, the pads of my feet softly connected to the shiny floor. My surroundings blared into my still adjusting eyes, leaving me to only see blurred silhouettes. I blinked rapidly, trying to shake my vision back. Several humans laughed. The first thing I clearly made out was Cyndaquil, and I was relieved to see that it was still indeed a cyndaquil. Surely he would have evolved at least once if I had been locked away as long as it felt. After identifying the pokémon, I realized that he was sitting at Ivy's feet.

* * *

"Oh no!" I gasped. "No, not her. I don't want her!" The slouching human holding my pokéball was gangly and inattentive. She had two twisted lumps of bark colored hair resting on her front. One arm crossed over her stomach and the other one's hand played with an end of hair rope. Barely casting a glance in my direction, she appeared distracted by the male next to her.

"I told ya," Cynadquil taunted. I glared at him, trying not to stare up at his trainer in envy. I could not help a few peaks though. Ivy appeared much more put together than my human. Her dress rested snug against her body and was a pleasing array of warm colors. An inviting autumn day. In comparison, the girl looming over me was dressed completely in baggy blue material that seemed stiff. There was a bit of pink peeking through the mostly buttoned jacket. Comparing them for a few more moments while both the female trainers watched the male free Totodile, I was disappointed to see that my trainer was taller than Ivy. Although it was rare, sometimes trainers would walk past the meadow's fence. They were all so much shorter than Ivy and Elm. I had figured it to be a trait of power, but perhaps it was simply age or a subspecies.

The male trainer spoke to the professor standing a few feet away. "Thank you Sir, he's really great!" Untamed joy registered in his bright open smile as he picked up the small totodile and held him close to his face. A fat marill I had not noticed at first was tucked between his arm and body. It wiggled furiously, which hardly seemed to faze the boy. "You want to meet your new friend?" He set them both down onto the floor near me. The marill poked Totodile and then chirped something unintelligible.

"You're certainly welcome, Emmett. It'd hardly be fair to set the girls up with a starter and not yourself." Elm grinned in the direction of the water pokémon, each taking turns lightly tapping the other. "Rosa seems to already enjoy having a companion."

"They're really cute together." Ivy commented. It may have been me getting used to human speech patterns, but it sounded odd to hear that remark in a serious tone. "Are you thinking of specializing in water types too?"

A small scowl came to his thin mouth. It was forced away before he answered. "No, I just really like totodiles. And Rosa was a gift, remember?"

"I still think you'd make a fierce water trainer."

A somewhat familiar dinging noise came from the direction of Elm. He put his wrist wearing a device up close to his bespectacled face, squinting at a square that would draw their strange designs. "Sorry kids, I have to take this. I'll be right back." He pushed a button and then crossed to the other side of the lab.

A heavy silence came to the trainers. Ivy fished a metallic tube out of the tiny bag hanging from her shoulder. She then used it to repaint her lips red. Cyndaquil told me that the respectable human females all wore the paint on their faces. Not surprisingly, my trainer had none. "You know, you _can _look at your chikorita, right? It's not going to hurt you." She said after smacking her lips a few times.

For the first time, my trainer made eye contact with me. I don't exactly know what I was expecting, but her reaction did not sit well with me. Her brow narrowed and her already small mouth thinned more. Even her stance changed in the way a caterpie's does when it meets a fearow.

"Grass type is going to be good for you, Penn." The male said. My ungrateful human immediately changed back into a timid, slightly dense, bug. "They're really mellow. Maybe you should give her a name."

"A name?" My human dimly mumbled in response.

"It'd help you bond better. C'mon, what do you think she looks like?"

Clearing forcing herself, she looked at me once again. "I dunno. Sally?"

He laughed and smiled wildly. Then he put one of his arms around her upper back and kind of shook her. It looked strange. I wondered what it meant briefly, but then I was sidetracked by the fact that I had flippantly been named Sally. Sally! Human names had never held much weight with my family, yet I could not stand that I would have to respond to such a silly word. Sally. Sounds like some kind of slimy bog pokémon.

By the time I was able to shake off my frustration and concentrate back on the humans again, he had left her back and was grabbing for her wrist. They must have been familial with each other. She made no move to flinch away, instead actually moving her hand towards his the slightest bit. "Just let her sniff your hand. Introduce yourself." The hand came towards my face. I tried to be brave, but I was afraid my disdain showed through. I likely matched my trainer's expression.

Elm stepped back over, thankfully interrupting the humans before they could reach me. "Sorry about that, gang. An old friend called me. It actually ties in perfectly with what I'd like for you to accomplish today." The professor began to rattle. I tried not to bolt towards the door, away from the human that would be charged with me.

* * *

**Author's Note: ** Sorry this is getting to such a slow start. This chapter was originally going to include a lot more, but I split the tutorial part of the game into two different parts. Next one will have my first battle in it, so that's a bit nerve-wracking.

I'm basing the past on my first play through of the game, so Lyra started with a cyndaquil in that. Again, it's not based off the television show at all.

Thanks for the review, the follows/favorites, and the views!


	3. Sidetracking

**Chapter Two**

Sidetracking

The wind blew so strong that my leaf was beaten down against the side of my head. It appeared to be doing the same to the curled tail of the rattata bouncing to and fro in front of me. A fire burned in his dark eyes, but he grinned at me with his oversized chipped teeth. "C'mon, let's go!" he squeaked.

How had I even gotten myself into that situation? A pokémon battle within the hour of meeting my reluctant trainer, how ridiculous! Still, there I stood, face to face with the scruffy purple rat.

Pride. That's what had done it. Following our new trainers, the three of us were led into a path nearly swallowed by tall grass. At times it swayed gently, moments later violently twisting. It never stayed still. The windy weather must have been normal; none of the humans mentioned it. Instead, they voiced their shared displeasure with having to travel to Route Thirty on errand. Mostly it was Ivy that spoke. "I can't believe my dad is making us go see Mr. Pokémon. That man is so senile, he thinks that every egg he gets is some amazing discovery! He'd stop finding them if he'd keep his togepi apart."

"Hey, I think it's great that he still gets so excited about stuff! My dad says he remembers Pokémon being an old man when he was a kid," the male responded with a strange smile that was somewhere in between a goofy grin and a smirk.

"Whatever. I just want to get started already! Cyndaquil and I have a lot of training to do."

My trainer stayed mostly quiet, fumbling slightly behind the other two.

Ivy saw the wild pokémon first. Well, the cyndaquil did, nudging her leg eagerly. The flames on his back surged upwards an additional inch or so. "Hey, check this out," she called to the other humans. I skipped past mine and up towards the fire type to see what they were looking at. Off to the edge of the path, some partially concealed by the thick grass, were a gang of rattata. Eight of them in all. Three were particularly large, both in height and in stomach. Their coats were shiny and whiskers straight. The same couldn't be said for the other five.

"Any of you wildlings wanna try your luck against me?" Cyndaquil brazenly asked, taking three steps closer to them. The larger ones scurried into the grass, behind the others. I could still see their noses and knew they were watching though. One of the other five looked back towards them through his beady eyes. One was surrounded by puffy skin, a fresh scratch jutting across it, making the eye itself milky. A large one hissed at it to 'go on.' Heavy with reluctance, it approached Cyndaquil.

"Alright Cyndaquil, looks like you found our first battle!" Ivy boasted. She looked back, giving a quick smile to the boy before settling her gaze on my trainer. "Penelope, you don't have a lot of experience, so make sure to pay close attention to this."

I managed to catch a glimpse of my trainer flicking her eyes upwards for a second.

It only took moments for the wild battleground to be set up. Ivy stood with Cyndaquil in front of her a few feet up the path from the rest of us. Ahead of them even further, the wounded rattata sat alone. "Let's start this," Ivy commanded and then her pokémon relayed it to the wildling. "Cyndaquil, shake it up with the meanest leer you've got!" I didn't think that glaring at it would work, it's one eye being damaged and all, but it edged back the slightest bit. I was thankful to only be able to see the fire type's radiant back.

"No running!" one of its acquaintances called from the grass. "No food if you make human mad!"

This reaffirmed the rattata who charged forwards at cyndaquil.

"Dodge to the left and then keep going to the edge of the path!" Ivy shouted. Of course the little normal type missed, skidding to a stop directly in front of her. "Tackle it now!" Cyndaquil had just enough room to gain the necessary speed. Its much bulkier body crashed hard into the rattata, sending it skidding off, dragging its side across the gravel. Pebbles sprang everywhere like raindrops on the wood of the fence surrounding the meadow. With much wobbling, it rose back onto its feet. "Tackle again!" This time when Cyndaquil crashed into the wildling, it stayed down with a whimper.

"Beg now!" the bigger rattata called to it. The defeated rattata lifted its head miserably, but that was all it could do. "Get food or no come back!"

"Give it some food!" I squeaked at Ivy, who was beaming and congratulating her pokémon. She paid me no attention. The male human was also busy sharing in their victory, telling Ivy how she sounded like a professional. My trainer fumed at this.

The two water pokémon, each resting against a leg of their trainer, were the only ones to look uncomfortable about the battle. They exchanged a few whispers before the marill stood up and slapped the male's pants a few times. "What's up Rosa?" It silently blinked a few times, holding its trainer's eye contact. "You hungry again?" He then pulled a pack from off his shoulders and, with a few seconds of digging around, retrieved a clear bag barely containing kibble snacks. He poured a handful and then gave it to Rosa. "Make sure you share with your new brother now." When attention was taken off them again, the marill put one piece in its own mouth, gave a piece to Totodile, and then threw the rest at the grass where the other rattata were watching. The one that had battled Cyndaquil was off the ground and with the others so rapidly that I hadn't even seen it move.

The humans continued to talk about the battle, Ivy lecturing my trainer, the male agreeing with everything anyone said. Cyndaquil sauntered over to me. "I finished that pretty quick, huh? No wonder Ivy chose me."

"It was already hurt," I snapped and wrinkled my face. "Anyone could have won that."

"Whatever, _Sally. _I bet you've never even battled before."

"I have too!" I argued back quickly. Too quickly.

The cyndaquil chuckled and began to walk away again. "You really haven't! What a loser! Didn't they teach you anything at your precious meadow?"

Hearing him mention my home in such a callous tone, well it made me mad! My meadow had been perfect, lush and breezy. Not like that place with its violent winds and untamed grass. Not at all! I had to prove him wrong, and so I bounded towards the rattata aggressively picking over the remnants of food on the ground. "I'm going to battle with one of you!"

* * *

So that was how I landed myself in front of the eager rattata, my trainer slouching just behind me. I looked back at her and she was staring back at the male, tugging at one of her lumps of hair. "You'll do great, Penn!" he called. She started to shake slightly and gnawed at her lower lip.

"_Okay, you can do this!" _I thought to myself. _"It'll be easy, just do what the bayleef used to practice." _

"Are we going or what? I gotta prove myself to the guys!" my opponent called at me. "Get your human going already!"

Yet another hiss came from a huge rattata concealed off the path. "Never wins!"

"C'mon!"

Once again, I looked back at my human. She kind of almost shrugged at me.

Sounding how the meganium used to when speaking to unmanageable chikoritas, Ivy said to my trainer, "You have to say a command."

"Oh," my human breathed. "Um, go?" she said unsurely.

I didn't need her anyways. I could do it all on my own! I had been brave enough to stand up for my meadow, and had certainly watched training enough. I strode forward several steps and then stopped. I rotated my head slowly, getting the feel of my neck craning around in circles. Once I got the hang of it, I sped my motions up. Faster, then faster, until my neck became hot like the flames on Cyndaquil's powerful back. I fully expected a surge of leaves to fly from my body and cut down the rattata. None came. Not even a wimpy one. I had to stop when it hurt too much.

"Uh, what's Sally up to?" the male asked. I refused to look back at the unhelpful humans; I didn't want to see the sneer that would surely be on the pokemon's face.

While Ivy was lecturing my trainer on being specific, my opponent shouted 'hey' at me until he had my attention. "You gotta do what that snoot did to my friend. Throw yourself at me! Like this!" He darted at me, and I flinched. The impact wasn't too bad, he had slowed just before reaching me. In fact, it was just a little bump, enough to jostle me but not enough to make me lose my footing. "Not so hard, huh?"

The rattata scampered to his side and I was ready when my trainer finally told me to 'tackle or whatever.' I plowed into him with my little bean body and flat face. I pushed him down into the ground, but he was back up in a blink. Then I returned to my position and he hit me a little harder than he had before. With the wind's assistance, I stumbled. I tackled him harder than that. And then he hit me once again. This continued until his grin was gone and I found myself running at him as hard as I had run after Elm. I was small, but sturdy. There was a small pop when I landed and he wasn't so quick to stand again. In fact, he just lied there. As I waited for him to come after me once more, Ivy congratulated my trainer on a 'dull but victorious' first battle.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Gah! Sorry this took so long. I wanted to get it out, so I, yet again, spliced a chapter into several smaller parts. I wanted the whole introduction part of the game to be done with this, but, as you've seen, that did not happen. As always, thanks for reading!


	4. Retrieval

**Chapter Three**

Retrieval

A light kiss of something sweet tickled my nose first. I could almost see the wispy trail its scent left in the air, growing thicker up the path. I ran ahead of the other pokémon and the humans, ignoring their shocked calls for Sally to come back. I didn't care if they ran into more wildlings. The dull thing could battle them herself. Use her own gawky body to hurt them.

A rich undertone joined the lovely smell caressing my nose. No doubt it was the mouthwatering scent of earth, but with a saltiness joining it I had never experienced before. I pushed on harder. More notes joined the melodic trail. Peaks of citrus rested on my lips, competing with a spiced musk. I thought my head was in danger of exploding until I finally scampered past all the wilderness and onto grass tamed by humans.

Large bushy trees surrounded the human colony. I'd never seen any such as those before and, while they did catch my attention with their heights far above the roofs, they couldn't hold onto it for long. All the box buildings were flanked by fenced in flowers. I ran to the closest one and buried my face into the thick clusters of soft petals. They were so much more impressive than the plants I'd grown up around. They needn't concentrate on having rough survivor bodies. They weren't topped with an afterthought bud smaller than my paw and with more seeds than petals. These flowers were short, all sharing the sun and nutrients. Vibrant colors invaded my eyes nearly as much as all the empowering smells. I carefully wedged my front two paws into the patch of beauty. They easily squished down into the dark soil. It was softer than I thought could be possible. I thought about dipping my head down and stealing a quick taste of it, but was interrupted by a raggedy voice.

"Sally! You cannot take off like that!" I looked behind me and saw my trainer standing, paws clenched and shaking at her sides. She was louder than I thought she had the capacity for, face red. No longer was she hunkered down by her timid bug nature. "You're an untrained pokémon; you could have hurt somebody!"

My body betrayed me and began to quiver. I pulled myself away from the flowers and lowered down as close to the cut grass as I could.

Ivy and the male broke into the town and quickly caught up to her. Ivy stepped to her side and joined her in glaring down at me. The third human stopped a few feet behind them, bending over slightly and breathing with his mouth wide open. The marill and totodile were tucked between his sides and arms. "I know Professor Elm is all about letting pokémon walk beside their trainers, but ones like that ruin it for me," Ivy stated.

My trainer went from standing tall back into a slouch. "Sorry," she muttered. "I didn't know she'd run off."

"Did you," the male gasped. "Did you just call your dad Professor Elm?"

"I've decided that I will be calling him by name while on the road. Out here I'm a trainer like everyone else. I don't want anyone thinking that I have a leg up just because my father is a top researcher."

His eyes were watering slightly. He wheezed, "that's cool," and waited a few beats to say anything else. Eventually he stood up straight and spoke with the light attitude he'd been carrying. "As for Sally, I think she probably just got excited. Don't worry too much about it, Penn. She wouldn't hurt anyone." He flashed a smile at me, but it didn't make me want to separate from the ground.

* * *

My trainer's outburst at me ruined the rest of our visit in Cherrygrove. Not that they took much time to enjoy the wonderful place. Mostly they visited a building with a red roof, talking to a woman behind a large desk. Other pokémon were inside, some resting on the rows of chairs, others trotting behind their humans, but I waited at the doors with Totodile. There was a scent that burned my nose inside and the walls were too unnaturally bright, like at the lab. They weren't going to let us be alone, but the male convinced the females.

"What are they even doing in there?" I grumbled. I could see them through the glass doors. Every time I moved too close to get a better view, the doors would slide apart and startle me. "That's a female in there. Elm told them to get an egg from an old male."

Totodile, sitting with its back legs out in front, tilted his head and then continued to pull up single blades of grass.

"Maybe I should go look. Then I could tell you what's happening."

He didn't even look at me that time.

The slick floor was colder than the lab's. I hated the cold. Made my leaf wilt to the side. It flopped in and out of my field of vision while I stalked to the familiar humans. My trainer dug around in her front pants pockets while the other two were talking to the female behind the counter. "Alright now," she said in a pleasant tone. "I've registered the two of you as active trainers, so you won't be charged for any simple heals that can be completed here at the front desk." She motion to a large machine hulking behind her. There were six round pits behind glass on the otherwise uninteresting front. Off to the side of it were some buttons and one of those big stick things that humans pulled down. "Any more serious injuries—fractured bones, internal bleeding, infections—that will require the attention of a doctor have charges." Her cheerful tone grew dark for a moment. "But I will advise you not to let any battle get to that point."

"Of course not!" the male said. Ivy just flicked her eyes upwards and took a small rectangle of plastic that the worker handed her.

The female behind the counter smiled brightly and returned herself to pleasantness. "Well then, once you find your license I can get you all set up as well."

"Yeah," my trainer said quietly. Her face started to get red again, though I felt that it was for different reasons. "I've, um, got it somewhere."

"Check your jacket," the male helped. "You always lose stuff there."

She patted a pocket on her chest with one of her grasping paws. Cheeks getting brighter, she then pulled out a rectangle like the one Ivy had been given. I had stopped a couple of feet behind her, but I could still make out an image of a human on it.

"Penn, that thing is ancient! You haven't renewed your card at all?"

"I didn't think I had to." She handed it to the worker, keeping her gaze averted from everything but the floor.

"You don't have to," Ivy said. "But it'd be more helpful if there wasn't a picture of you from when you were ten on it. Rangers might not accept it."

"Oh."

"Don't worry about it," the happy-but-sometimes-scary woman said while sliding the card up and down on a machine. "The academy over in Violet city can set you with an updated license. Only takes a day or two, if I recall correctly."

Cyndaquil, who'd been sitting against Ivy's heeled boot, noticed me. He smirked and then stood up on his back legs, pawing at her legs. Ivy looked down and in a stern tone ordered, "down!"

When they finally left the building, we went straight to traveling north. We walked in mostly silence as we kept to Ivy's brisk pace. Passing by a lone house, I noticed a little tree by its door. Strange round fruit were growing on it. I wanted to investigate, but remembered my trainer's sudden volume. I kept to her heels.

The path was littered with small humans like the ones I'd seen run past the fence. Not like the ones I was following. Some had pokémon with them, mostly rattata and ledyba. Others were grouped around those ones, admiring their companions. Our humans never stopped to talk to any of them. They didn't even give the others a second look when passing by. A particularly short human with a hat barely rounder than its head stopped and pointed at us. "Look guys, those are the starters Elm gives! They must be really good." He started waddling in our direction and my trainer quietly growled for me to stay close to her. "They're really neat! Wanna battle?" His question was answered with a lack of response.

* * *

The day had been filled with unusual smells and the old man's house was no different. His was suffocating, dusted over windows begged to be opened. Our trainers had been escorted to a couch, while us pokémon were set down onto a patch of soft ground. The purple square pattern on it competed with several splotches of odd browns and oranges that I didn't think belonged. "Look at all his books! There's probably something about my family in one of them," Cyndaquil said to me, raising a paw at the boxes scattered over the floor. They were overflowing with books, bindings of the humans' silent language. The fire pokémon leaned forward, pushing his neck as far as it would go. It was obvious that he wanted to dig through them all, probably to prove that he really was from a line of important cyndaquil, but he didn't dare to leave the soft ground covering we'd been put upon.

"Can you tell what those funny lines mean?" I asked him, simply for something to do. The old man had gone into another room to retrieve the egg.

He didn't answer me at first. Finally, much quieter than he normally was, he said, "No. Sometimes the books have pictures though. I'd be able to recognize my great-uncle or anyone else from my family line."

We didn't say anything more.

Time moved slowly as the elderly human came back. The egg nearly outsized his bent body and I was afraid it would snap his twig arms. I felt bad for it, not being in a nest surrounded by others that would become its friends and families. My brother or sister had probably already hatched. Mother would have moved on, being smart enough to not dwell on things she could not fix. I hoped that she at least knew I had been brave to leave.

The humans talked for too long with the old male. He sat like a rock in a chair by himself, patiently telling story after story, while the three on the couch squirmed. His words bored me worse than Elm's. At least his face was fascinating. Rivers of wrinkles danced together in his skin, syncing their moves as his mouth flapped about.

When he'd finally said enough words to be happy, we were greeted by an electrifying sun as it started its descent for the day. The old male gave the egg to the young male, then weakly waved and hobbled back inside his home. The loud slam of the door shutting made me jump.

"What a waste of time!" Ivy said while stretching. "I thought he'd never shut up."

"He does have a lot of stories," the young male agreed.

"What a pain," she muttered. The tangy colors of the sky made her hair look like Cyndaquil's back. "You guys can take that thing back to the lab; I'm just going to head to Violet City now."

In her signature mumble, my trainer asked, "What?"

"There's no way I'll be able to keep my appointment at the gym tomorrow if I have to go all the way back home. I've gotta get there tonight."

"That's cool, I don't really mind starting a day behind," the male replied with his dopey smile. He shifted the egg around in his arms and took a step towards Ivy, making sure to carefully navigate around his water pokémon. "I'll stay in town with Penn tonight and then I can just meet you at the spot."

"What spot?"

Ivy flashed her teeth at him, eyes making a single flick towards my trainer. "That sounds great, Em." She crossed to the male and put her paws on his shoulders, making him readjust the egg again. In a coordinated motion, she stretched up and put her mouth onto his. A squeaky noise came from their pressed lips, making me feel strange for watching intently. I had yet to encounter this human custom. From the shamed turn away my trainer did, I assumed it had to do with mating. That or fighting. They didn't glare when they pulled back though. Their eyes had a glaze if anything.

"I'll miss ya," the male said quietly to Ivy, although all of us could hear it.

"Just don't take too long. If I don't see you after I get my badge, I can always head back and meet you."

Ivy turned around once more after she and Cyndaquil began to march away. "See you soon, Penelope," she called, only turning her head back. "Take good care of Emmett for me." My trainer bit on her lip and nodded. She tightened one of her paws again, like she had when she yelled at me.


End file.
